Life after the Boston Marathon

I think that runners who hope to perform well at the Boston Marathon try to pretend like it’s just another race.  The truth is; it is not just another race ………

The weeks leading up to “the marathon”, the city is transformed.  The onslaught begins from the moment one claims their luggage at the airport and it continues everywhere one turns.  It seems that every street corner has a banner or sign whose purpose is to celebrate the event and to bring the annual trek to the forefront of one’s mind.  While pretending it’s just another race will help runners save their endorphins for when they need them, it is hard to not be excited and feel special.

Welcoming banner at Boston's airport.

Church steeple flying the colors of the Boston Athletic Association (BAA)

Corner phone booths were fully decked out too.

Even Fenway Park (home of Boston Red Sox) got in on the celebration.

Following the race, a huge billboard sponsored ad for New Balance sums up the winter training.

The expo is a bustling atmosphere with over a hundred vendors looking to snag the curiosity of the legions of runners.  The latest shoes, shades, sugar goo, snacks, singlets, shorts, and several other things that don’t begin with “S” were readily available.  Travel agents, other races, and memorabilia stands were plentiful too.  Finally, there were the gimic dealers such as one selling a towel that supposedly would stay cool for the entire race and others selling titanium bracelets.  Then, there was packet pickup.  It alone could fill two gymnasiums.  When I walked up to the first line, the line to claim bib numbers 101-1000, I felt as though everyone stopped what they were doing to watch me.  For all they knew, I could be an elite runner.  The whole experience was unreal.

Packet pickup, stop 2 of 3 different lines one went through..

The pasta feed was an equally impressive congregation of runners, volunteers, and loud music.  It was hard to not break out and run right then and there with that pump-up music blaring.  The food was very good and in endless supply.  The volunteers gave endless streams of well wishes for the race.  Tickets are included in one’s race packet and it is easy to get an extra for a spouse simply by asking other runners at the expo (it took 5 minutes tops).

Boston's City Hall and courtyard is transformed into a mass dining event.

 

The treatment from friends is equally astounding.  When I got back to my hotel room following the race, I had over 150 messages.  People just get how special of an experience the Boston Marathon is.  My substitute at school had students make me cards of congratulations.  My fellow staff members held a reception in my honor.  Even further, I was mentioned in no fewer than seven different newspaper articles.  Finally, for being the #1 Iowan, I was on several stations’ 6pm & 10pm newscasts.

In fact, just Thursday afternoon, now ten months later we were with my son at the doctor.  He recognized my name and had to ask if I was some kind of athlete.  I told him that I coached, but he was certain that wasn’t where he had heard about me.  So I continued to tell him about running and the Boston Marathon media reports were the connection.

So, how does one more forward after the Boston Marathon?  After months of arduous training, then an extended weekend of feeling like the main attraction, would there be a letdown?

The day after the race, I awoke at 5:00AM and sped halfway across the country via subway, bus, airplane, and car to make it back to Ames, Iowa in time to coach at a high school track meet.  We arrived back in Ames around 3:30PM, which gave me about 45 minutes at home with my kids before heading off to the meet.  I tend to live life to the fullest, so there would be no time for a letdown.  I had to be on my game to motivate my athletes to run well.  That night, the team qualified 5 events to the prestigious Drake Relays, one of the 3 most prestigious outdoor track meets in America.

So, other than being overly busy, how else did I avoid a letdown?  Being a planner paid dividends there too.  In the week leading up to the race, I battled if I should schedule a redemption race knowing that the weather was set to be blistering.  I even tried to get into the Lincoln Marathon, held three weeks later in Lincoln, Nebraska.  It had sold out in January and there were no spots reserved.  At that point, I decided to let go of the marathon and move on to shorter races for the upcoming summer.  I planned a week off with no running but violated that the very first night home.  I ran a mile warm-up with our 3000m runner while giving her a race plan for the night (she eventually ran a PR).

Having a plan, though, is what allowed me to move forward with new excitement.  I did not run the next three days, but did do an easy 7-miler on Saturday and a strong 10-miler on Sunday.  I took Monday off again due to another track meet and then jumped right in with long hill repeats on Tuesday.  I formed a plan to take down my 5k PR of 16:06 and ultimately accomplish my 11+ year goal of running under 16 minutes.  My training plan and the result of my pursuit of sub-16 will be in my next entry.